Adjustable support for sliding doors



Feb. 9, 1954 c. B. LE BON nl DJUSTBLEl SUPPORT F OR SLIDING DOORS Filed Feb. 25. 1952 INVENTOR rTa/QNEY- HAQLS E EON-ZZT about a horizontal transverse axis with respect to the rail and which is adjustably secured at its other end for permitting limited pivotal movement in a vertical direction about said pivotal axis. A wedge shoe extends beneath the latter end of the carrier means and is adapted to be longitudinally advanced and retracted by easily accessible screw means for raisingr and lowering one corner of a sliding door so as to move the side members of the door into parallel relation with the jambs oi a door frame.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be readily apparent from the following description of the drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side view of a sliding door and a door frame, the view being partly in section to show the mountingV of an adjustable device embodying this invention upon. the bottom rail of the door, and the door being illustrated in out-of-square relationship to the door frame.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the adjustable device in Fig. l secured to the bottom rail of a sliding door.

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional View taken in the plane indicated by line III-III of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken in the plane indicated by line IV-IV of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken in the plane indicated by line V--V of Fig. l of the door and door frame adjacent the top thereof illustrating non-cooperable relationship of an out-of-squar door with side :lambs of a door frame.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken in plane indicated byline V--VI of Fig. l.

The drawings show an exemplary illustration of an adjustable device embodying this invention, generally indicated at IB, carried and mounted upon a bottom rail member il of a metal-framed sliding glass door generally indicated at I2. The sliding door I2 may comprise in addition to the bottom rail member II, side g members I3 and a top rail member I4, said door members all lying in the same plane and normally fabricated in squared relationship.

The door frame forming the opening to be closed by a sliding door I2 comprises a sill I5 carrying a guide rail I6 for cooperation with wheel and axle assemblies supporting the sliding door. Side jambs I1 are connected across the top by a head member I8, said sill member, side jamb members and head member being illustrated as being in true squared relation.

In the illustration, the door I2 is shown with the door members in slightly out-of-square relation or in the arrangement of a parallelogram. The out-of-square relation is exaggerated in Figs. l, 5 and 6 for clarity and to show the non-cooperation of a door side member I3 with respect to a side jamb II of the door frame. It is apparent from these illustrations that while a weather seal is provided at the lower side portion of the door (Fig. 6) by reception of flange I3a within the weather-stripped groove I'Ia, this condition does not exist at the top side portion oi the door (Fig. 5) where an open space A exists between groove IIa and ange i3d. Lifting of the side of the door opposite to the jamb Il, in this example, will move the door side member into parallel relation with the jamb and provide proper cooperation between lange 13a and groove I'ia.

This invention contemplates that one of the wheel and axle assemblies normally carried by the bottom rail oi a door be carried or mounted in the adjustable device I0 of this invention. In Fig. 1 a wheel and axle assembly 20 is illustrated as being carried at one end of the bottom rail member II in well-known manner. The opposite end of the bottom rail member II carries a wheel and axle assembly 2I mounted in the adjustable device IG of this invention.

The device I0 comprises a carrier means 22 for wheel and axle assembly 2I, said carrier means including a U section metal member having a transverse wall 23 integrally joining parallel depending side walls 24. The side walls 24 may be provided with aligned ports for providing an axle mounting at 25 for the wheel and axle assembly 2 I.

A mounting bar 25 of elongated flat metal stock-may be secured to the top wall 2l of the bottom rail member II in any suitable manner as by screws 28 extending through ports 29 adjacent each end of bar 26. At one end, bar 26 may be provided with a depending off-set horizontally extending clip 3l) preferably stamped from the metal of the bar to provide a pivotal mounting for one end of carrier means 22 as by partially receiving the adjacent end margin of wall 23 between clip 3G and bar 26.

Longitudinally spaced from clip 30 and at approximately the central portion of the mounting bar 26, a depending guide and limit screw or pin SI is carried by the bar. The screw 3| extends through a port 32 provided in the end portion of transverse wall 23 opposite to the end margin engaged by clip 30. The screw 3| is provided with a head 33 of greater diameter than port 32 so as to limit downward pivotal movement of the carrier means about its pivotal axis. The end of screw 3l threadedly engaged in bar 26 may be peened over or center punched so as to prevent unthreading thereof. It will thus be noted that the carrier means is provided selected limited pivotal movement about a horizontal transverse axis at clip 38 and is held in assembled relation with the mounting bar 26. A wedge shoe or member 35 operably extends between the non-pivoted end margin of transverse wall 23 of the carrier means 22 and the opposed surface of mounting bar 26. The shoe` 35 may be of generally hollow construction comprising a base portion 33 adapted to slide along the opposed surface of bar 26 and provided with an open ended slot 31 adapted to slidably receive screw 3l therein for guiding longitudinal movement of the shoe 35. Generally triangular shaped depending spaced walls 38 are integrally joined with base portion 36 and an end wall portion 39. The edges of the triangular shaped walls 38 are adapted to contact as at 40 the adjacent end edge of transverse wall 23.

Means for longitudinally advancing and retracting wedge shoe 36 to raise and lower wheel and axle assembly 2l may be provided by a headed screw bolt 42 iournably secured at one end to wall 39 as at 43. The screw bolt 42 may be supported by a downwardly extending loop 44 formed in mounting bar 26, said loop having ported spaced depending walls 45 through which the screw bolt 42 extends. Between spaced walls 45 is a nut 46 having threaded engagement with bolt 42.

The end wall 41 of the bottom rail member II may` be provided with an access opening 49 aligned with screw bolt 42 and through which a suitable tool'suchas alscrewdri-vermay be inserted forl cooperative engagement' with the notched head of screwbolt 42forradj ustably moving the wedge shoe 36.

The adjustable device I is preferably secured to the bottom rail member I I oi asliding door at the factory although' it maybe securedth'ereto on the job 'if desired. Y'Whenian out-of-square door I2 is installed in a door frame the device I0 may be readily adjusted to position and maintain the door with its side members in parallel relation -to the side jambs of the frame-.3 This may easily be accomplishedbyturning screw bolt 42 in a selected direction so as to either advance or retract the Wedge shoe 36 for wedging engagement between the carrier means 22 and mounting bar 26.

When making the adjustment a suitable tool may be inserted beneath the bottom rail I I to relieve the adjustable device of the dead load of the sliding door when it is being adjusted. Removal of the inserted tool will place part of the dead load of the sliding door upon the wheel and axle assembly 2I. wedge shoe 36 outwardly and in so doing, moves the screw bolt 42 outwardly so that tolerance is taken up between the nut 46 and the closely adjacent inner surface of the outer wall 45. The

screw bolt 42 is thus frictionally held by the nut in selected position in such a manner that .it does not become loose during operation of theV door.

It will be readily understood by those skilled in the art that the adjusting device I0 may be mounted on either the top or bottomlrail of a sliding door, as for example. when the sliding door is hung from rollers engaging track means carried by a head member of a frame. Likewise, the use of the device is not limited to steel framed sliding glass doors but may be readily secured and applied to wooden sliding door frames.

A sliding door provided with the adjustable device of this invention may be quickly installed at the job site in such a manner that weatherstripping between the side jamb of the frame and the opposed side member of the door will be effective throughout the entire height of the side member of the door. Door locking means are quickly adjustable into cooperable relation.

It is understood that adjustable devices of this invention may be installed adjacent each end of a rail member of a door so as to provide a greater degree of adjustment if desired. The mounting bar of the device may be eliminated and the carrier means supported directly from the rail member.

Various other modifications may be made in the exemplary device of the invention described above and al1 such modifications and changes coming within the scope of the appended claims are embraced thereby.

I claim:

1. An adjustable roller device for use with a metal-framed sliding door including a hollow rail member having an end wall with an access opening therein: said adjustable device adapted to be carried by the rail member adjacent to the end Wall and comprising a mounting bar adapted t0 be secured to the rail member; an elongated carrier means having a pivotal connection at one end to said mounting bar; a headed member carried by the mounting bar and slidably associated with the carrier means for limiting movement of said carrier means about said pivotal connection; a wheel and axle assembly mounted on said Such load tends to press the carrier meanssf vedg hoe aangedreven he. bar Y and` yhaving' a vmeansf and screw means 'carried' theb'ar and Aconnected* .to the Ywelige shoe, Vfor. advancing and retracting said shoe; said screw `meansuibeiung adapted to be alignedwith the'accessfopening. l j

' 2.'A device as recited in `claim`1,A wherein a Aslot is provided on said `shoe .cooperablelwith the headed member carried by the bar .for holdingthe 'shoe in alignment with the screw meansv and `the carrier means.` ,Y

3. A' device as recited injclaimv 1, wherem a pair of spaced ported parallel depending walls areintegrally formedgon said mounting bar lfor carrying said screw meansr and a nut is carried by said screw means between said walls.

4. An adjustable roller device for use with a sliding door including a rail member having an access opening therein: said adjustable device being adapted to be carried by the rail member adjacent to the end wall and comprising a mounting bar adapted to be secured to the rail member; an elongated carrier means having a pivotal connection at one end to said mounting bar; means carried by the mounting bar for limiting movement of the carrier means about said pivotal connection; a wheel and axle assembly mounted on said carrier means; a wedge shoe interposed between the carrier means and the bar and having a wedge face in engagement with said carrier means; and screw means carried by the bar and connected to the Wedge shoe for advancing and retracting said shoe, said screw means being adapted to be aligned with the access opening.

5. A device for use with a sliding door and in .combination with a rail of said door comprising: carrier means adapted to journably support a wheel and axle assembly; means supported by the rail pivotally mounting one end of said carrier means for movement about a transverse horizontal axis; means supported by the rail and associated with the other end of said carrier means limiting pivotal movement of the carrier means about the pivotal axis; a wedge shoe interposed between the latter end of the carrier means and the rail; and means for advancing and retracting the wedge shoe while in engagement with the carrier means to raise and lower the wheel and axle assembly by pivotal movement of the carrier means about said pivotal axis, said advancing and retracting means including a screw means connected to said wedge sh'ce and cooperable nut means supported by the ra1 6. A device for use with a sliding door and in combination with a rail of said sliding door for positioning and maintaining side members of said door in parallel relationship with side jambs of a door frame comprising: carrier means adapted tojournably support a Wheel and axle assembly; means supported by the rail pivotally mounting one end of said carrier means for movement about a transverse horizontal axis; means associated with the other end of said carrier means limiting pivotal movement of the carrier means about the pivotal axis; a, wedge shoe interposed between the latter end of the carriermeans and the rail; and means for advancing and retracting the Wedge shoe while in engagement with the carrier means to raise and lower the wheel and axle assembly by pivotal movement of the carrier means about said pivotal axis.

7. A device for use on a sliding door compris- STATES PATIENTS .Number Name Date v '81;32'9 YDeering 'Man 2, '-1869 "Q OLBS Deel-ing `M2y `25, 1869 2572101 Somers A- May "2,1882 V:$5,314 MCMiIlan J'lily 13,'1886 Y YFOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date v A Germany Y Y f Nov. 21, l1932 

